Kept honest by a hard-hitting mid-game by Madras
Linlithgow u14 (31, 38) 66 – 38 (5, 24) St Leonard’s Madras u14
Saturday 29 November 2025
Report by Alan Taylor
It was to be an energetic day for players and parents alike. As the team warmed up on a chilly November morning the cakes were being displayed in the much warmer clubhouse, along with steaming hot tea and coffee for the fundraising bake sale.
The game ebbed and flowed with a quick out of the blocks Young Reds who bombarded the scoreboard before losing focus mid-game, but finding traction again in the final third to close off a convincing win. Linlithgow lined up with two subs, where Madras (in dark blue) were going to have to make do with the starting fifteen for the entire game.
Whether the kick-offs were duffers or well-rehearsed they were proving very difficult to gather for Linlithgow throughout the game, as they barely reached 10 meters then skittered along the wet ground. This caused us to be pinned back initially until Nathan’s kick through was re-gathered and passed to Callum who sped up the right wing before a perfectly timed and weighted pass to a supporting Max saw him open the scoring. The next try was straight from the recent set piece scrum training sessions, with Jay dummying to the blind side but Callum lifting the ball from no.8 and releasing the centres, with Archie going over for a quick second try to stun the opposition.
From our restart Madras caught cleanly and within seconds covered 60m and scored without needing to even pass the ball. It seemed like it was game on, however we had 3 more tries in us for the first third, each of which were converted. Callum was next to go over with a diagonal run that straightened up as the gaps appeared, although he was chased by their right wing all the way to the line. Hard tackling from Brodie was rewarded with a scrum which we won even although we were on the back foot from the hefty Madras pack. A fast-thinking Jay at scrum half didn’t need a second invite to complete a flying Superman touch down through the tiniest of openings. Madras then released their big gun making progress towards our 22, eventually taking the combined efforts of Scott and Struan to stop him, just as he released the ball to their right wing who was tackled by his opposite wing, Finlay to save the try. The boys had to sustain a barrage of St Leonard’s attacks which were being stood up over the in-goal area before they at last wrestled the ball back. After trying everything to try to get away from the dead ball line with ball in hand the boys remembered they could kick to safety, which released the onslaught eventually. A well won ball from Tomin the ruck created the final move of the opening third with Joe from full back darting up the left wing before checking and going inside where thankfully Jay popped up on his shoulder, as he ran into trouble, and went over for his second try of the day.
In the mid-section of the game, we were outscored 19 points to 7. There had been some major re-shaping of the team during the interval and it was great to see all the team coming together and re-grouping as the individuals became more familiar in their new roles. Ruaridh was being as disruptive as ever at the breakdown and we were holding our own but slowly and surely Madras got a couple of scores back, as too many missed tackles made it all too easy for them. On another day the heads could have went down as we were rattled with the pressure building against us but the combination with the cool head of Blairpassing excellently from the scrums and rucks and Max’sboot clearing us out of trouble as well as finding good distance from penalties kept their heads above water. From a line out Jack at hooker found his target which after a long pass out saw Lucas (playing out of position at prop today) with the only home try in this period of the game. This settled the nerves just before the whistle as they went into the final third with a little less of a cushion than made it comfortable.
A resurgent Linlithgow finished the game on a high as the big runners barged and bounced over the gain line with Logan making ground tirelessly and Lucas and Callum going over for more power scores, that were weakening Madras both physically and mentally. The highlight try was a well-read interception from Jay with a chip and chase then another chip on while running at full pace before picking up for a stunning try showcasing all his footballing and handling skills.
Lucas received man of the match not only for scoring three massive tries, but also for embracing the stand-in prop role and contesting absolutely everything with one hundred percent effort.